SPIKING THE GUNS
HARDLY had the colonel spoken these words than there came a loud
shout from one of the men on the roof.
"The cannon, sir--six of them!"
With grave faces we ascended to the leads, and looking in the
direction of the road to Chalton, we saw the heavy pieces of ordnance
descending the hill, the horses making slow progress on the slippery
chalk surface, which, by reason of the heavy rains, was little better
than a quagmire.
"The fools have learnt wisdom," grumbled the colonel, as he saw the
cannon unlimbered while still beyond musket range. Not even our small
ordnance could throw a ball that distance, so we were perforce to
remain inactive under a destructive fire.
Seeing that it would be madness to keep the garrison at their posts,
I ordered the men to withdraw and take shelter within the courtyard,
where, save for an occasional dropping fire from the musketeers, they
were in comparative safety, the double thickness of the walls
preventing the cannon-balls from passing completely through.
Hardly was the last man down than a sudden roar burst upon our ears,
followed by an appalling crash of falling masonry.
The bombardment had commenced,
"If this continue, we shall have nothing but a breastwork of fallen
stone to protect us," exclaimed Granville.
"'Tis better than nothing at all," replied the colonel, who was
calmly smoking his pipe. "Rubble masonry will serve the purpose
better than standing walls. Look!" he exclaimed, pointing through a
window. "'Twould have been farewell to us all had we remained on the
roof."
The second discharge had blown in a part of the hall, and the roof,
together with the culverins, had fallen in with a crash and a thick
cloud of dust.
"It has cut off our retreat to the cellars," cried Granville,
crestfallen.
"There is another entrance from the buttery," I replied. "But 'tis
not yet time to think of retreat."
The cannonade continued for over an hour, during which time
thirty-two men clustered in helpless suspense against the inner wall;
though at intervals the colonel, dauntless in danger, made his way
through the ruined hall to make sure that the pikemen were not
advancing to the assault.
The firing had been directed almost at one spot, with the intention
of making a wide breach, and in this object the rebels succeeded. To
our surprise, however, we heard a trumpet sound a parley, and another
envoy appeared summoning us once again to surrender at discretion,
otherwise a general assault would be made at daybreak on the morrow.
To this proposal we gave a stern refusal.
"At daybreak to-morrow," quoth the colonel. "It gives us a chance.
Now is the proper time to ask for volunteers, and to-night I'll lead
a party to attempt to spike the guns."
Both Ralph and I expressed our intention of accompanying him, but to
this he objected, saying that our place was within the walls of the
castle. Upon calling for volunteers, not less than twenty showed
their willingness to make the attempt, and of these Colonel Firestone
selected six.
For the rest of the day we were unmolested, and making the most of
this respite, we set about strengthening the battered walls and
repairing the breach with a wall of rough masonry faced with earth
and straw.
As night drew on, the men selected for the forlorn attempt were
mustered. Each of these was provided with a hammer and a couple of
steel spikes, and in addition they were armed with swords and
pistols.
The colonel gave the word in a low tone, and in perfect silence
handgrips were exchanged, and the little party filed out through the
postern.
Directly they had vanished through the darkness, the rest of the
garrison manned the walls, where, with matches ready to light, we
waited in deadly silence the result of the hazardous enterprise.
We relied upon the guns being in the same position they had occupied
during the day. Although well in the rear of the rebel lines, they
commanded a clear front, so that, had the enemy neglected to post
sentinels in the intervening gap, our men would doubtless be able to
reach the object of their endeavours without hindrance.
Half an hour elapsed without any signs of the movements of our
friends, though several of the watchers declared they heard the blows
of the hammers as the spikes were driven in--a manifest
impossibility, owing to the distance between the castle and the guns.
Suddenly the darkness was pierced by a bright flash, followed by a
report of a musket.
Other flashes came in quick succession, and the next instant the
whole of the rebel lines became a ring of spitting fire.
The sortie had been discovered, and the besiegers in the trenches,
not knowing the cause of the alarm, had expected a sudden attack, and
in a panic had opened fire on all sides.
For over a quarter of an hour the fusillade continued, till we could
hear the trumpets sounding and the voices of the rebel officers
calling to their men to desist then all became quiet.
Although the postern was ready to be opened at the first signs of
their return, none of our gallant friends reappeared, so with
sorrowful hearts we realised that seven good men were lost to our
little garrison.
Even had Firestone succeeded in spiking the guns, our position was
indeed desperate. Scarce a mere handful of worn men remained to hold
the shattered walls; and, at any moment, the rebels were likely to
throw all their foot into the breach to attempt to carry the castle
by escalade.
Would we see the setting of the morrow's sun? None could say.
"Poor old Firestone," said Granville. "I fear we shall never see him
again. He ought never to have gone."
"His leg was against him; he never had a fair chance," I replied.
"Then why did we allow him to go?"
"Ah, why?" I echoed bitterly.
Brave in conflict, crafty and wary in danger, and possessed of iron
nerve, Firestone was undoubtedly a severe loss to us. Strangely
enough, when he proposed to lead the forlorn hope, none of us gave a
thought to his one physical defect. On horseback he was the equal of
any man, but when on foot the circumstances were totally different,
and we blamed ourselves for letting him go.
For us sleep was out of the question; and, impatiently pacing the
ruined terrace, we awaited the dawn.
At length the pale grey sky began to brighten in the east. A thick,
rolling mist filled the valley, while above the banks of vapour the
dark, tree-clad downs assumed distorted and indistinct shapes.
Now, of all times, was the rebels' opportunity, but though the breach
was lined with our musketeers, there came no sign of the promised
assault.
As the day drew on the slanting rays of the rising sun gradually
dispersed the mist, and presently we could see the rebel lines,
marked by thin columns of smoke, where the men were preparing their
morning meal. Then the ground on which the cannon had stood became
visible, but instead of the six pieces of ordnance only three
remained, each surrounded by a crowd of soldiers.
As we looked, one of the guns was limbered up, and made off in the
direction of Chalton village, and shortly afterwards another
followed.
Only one now remained, its muzzle threateningly trained on the
castle, yet 'twas evident that something was amiss, for men were hard
at work on it.
"Firestone has not thrown himself away without reason," I exclaimed.
"See, they must have spiked every gun."
"Five of them hopelessly so, it seems," replied Ralph. "Though
perchance this one is not totally disabled, and even yet we may get a
taste of it."
"The threatened attack at daybreak has not taken place,
nevertheless," I observed. "The rebels are not standing to their
arms."
"Perchance they await the support of an artillery fire. But let's to
breakfast, for later on we may have other work on hand."
We lost no time in falling in with Granville's suggestion, and
immediately after we set the men to work on constructing thick wooden
mantlets, under the cover of which we still further repaired the
breach in the walls.
Unfortunately, a great part of the dislodged masonry had fallen
outwards, almost filling in the moat immediately in front of the
weakest part of our defences; but behind the breach we built up a
second wall, breast high, backed by a platform of earth, so that we
could the better hold our own in a chance hand-to-hand conflict.
Barely had we completed these preparations when there came the deep
boom of a cannon. The rebels had unspiked their sole remaining piece
of ordnance, and were renewing the attack.
The first shot, being totally unexpected, was particularly
disastrous, for three men were struck down, two being killed
outright, and one grievously wounded.
While the cannonade lasted, we, as before, could do nothing, but
presently we observed the pikemen and musketeers massing in solid
ranks, slightly to the left of the line of fire of the cannon. Then
two dismounted officers made their way to the front, and took a long
and careful look at our defences.
"There's Chaloner!" I exclaimed, pointing to one of the pair, who
were clad in complete breast and back pieces over their buff coats,
and wore steel motions protected by guards. These accoutrements were
not worn by the dragoons, and Granville remarked about the fact.
"'Tis certain the rogue makes himself secure from pike-thrusts," he
remarked, with a scornful laugh.
The rebel ranks were set in motion, and, with matches lighted and
pikeheads gleaming in the sunlight, they advanced to the attack, the
pikemen in the centre and the musketeers on either flank.
So intent were we on the oncoming danger that we almost failed to
notice a solitary horseman riding furiously down the hill-side from
the clump of trees, from which he had emerged.
Spurring towards the deserted trenches, his horse cleared them at a
single bound, and ere either we or the rebels could grasp the meaning
of it, the rider was halfway across the intervening ground.
"'Tis Firestone!" exclaimed Ralph and I simultaneously; and we were
not mistaken. The musketeers had now opened fire on the daring rider,
and the bullets whistled past him on all sides, some tearing up the
turf under his horse's hoofs; but he seemed to bear a charmed life,
and, untouched, he gained the edge of the moat.
As he slipped from the saddle a bullet struck down his horse, but
without hesitation the colonel jumped into the moat, and was soon
safely within the postern.
It was no time for explanations, so, picking up a musket, he took his
stand with us at the breach, and prepared to receive the shock of
battle.
We lay close for fear of the musketeers' fire, till the first line of
pikemen, headed by Chaloner, gained the foot of the breach; then,
pouring in a heavy discharge of muskets, we caused the line of pikes
to waver. But by sheer dint of numbers they pressed on, shouting, "No
quarter!"
Pistol and musket shots still rang out, a thick smoke enshrouding
both sides, but the brunt of the work was done by sword-cut and
pike-thrust. Men shouted in anger, or shrieked in mortal pain, but
still the slashing and hewing continued with unabated fury.
For my part, carried away by the heat of the struggle, I was
unconscious of what was taking place beyond my immediate front; but
presently I found myself face to face with my arch-enemy, Chaloner.
Doubtless his faith in his armour and the fear of Cromwell's threat
had tamed his spirit of cowardice, for he fought bravely. Defending
myself from his sweeping cuts, I succeeded in delivering some thrusts
that, were it not for his steel plating, would have been mortal.
At length I put in a thrust beneath his guard, and the blade struck
home through the bars of his helmet.
With a cry, he turned; but ere he could get clear my sword passed
between the top of his back-plate and the unguarded part of his
bended head. Had he carried his head erect this would have been
impossible, but his cowardly instinct caused him to assume that
posture, and 'twas his undoing.
Before I could withdraw my blade I saw the butt of a musket
descending upon my head, and, with a blinding red glare before my
eyes, I lost consciousness.